Uganda hires PR agency to buff up its image

A London PR firm has been hired to polish the image of the Ugandan government, which is wrestling with a civil war, a tarnished human rights record, and a wave of criticism from western media and human rights groups.

President Yoweri Museveni, who has led the country for 19 years, is under fire for failing to make peace with rebels in the north and promoting policies which favour abstinence over condoms for tackling HIV/Aids.

The British government recently cancelled £5m of aid because of concerns about democracy. Most damaging of all, perhaps, was criticism from Sir Bob Geldof, who urged Mr Museveni to "get a grip" and step down from power.

But Uganda has found a solution: the government is to spend £350,000 brushing up its image.

Hill & Knowlton, one of the world's biggest PR firms, will be working with the government, trying to build bridges with lobby groups such as Human Rights Watch, which has been highly critical of Mr Museveni.

The PR firm has itself been criticised in the past for working with governments such as Indonesia and Turkey, whose human rights records are dubious.

Hill & Knowlton yesterday confirmed its contract with the Ugandan government. James Barbour, associate director, said: "What we are doing is encouraging dialogue between the Ugandan government and people like Human Rights Watch, Amnesty, Oxfam. It's not about spinning a different version of the truth, its about making sure that the Ugandans are having the right conversations with the right people."

Uganda, where political parties have been tightly controlled in the past, is due to hold multi-party elections next year. But Mr Museveni has been accused of seeking constitutional changes that will permit him to run for president again.

At the launch of the Commission for Africa report, Sir Bob Geldof said his earlier admiration for Uganda's successes in combating poverty and HIV/Aids had faded.

He said: "Get a grip, Museveni. Your time is up, go away." The comments prompted pro-government demonstrations in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, urging the rock star and anti-poverty campaigner to "sober up and shut up."

Uganda is heavily dependent on overseas aid, receiving half its budget from western donors. But Mr Museveni has also been critical of donors, claiming the Ugandan people are the true donors because the west's wealth is built on raw materials from Africa.

Last month, Human Rights Watch accused Ugandan authorities of arresting two opposition MPs on "apparently trumped up charges". The human rights group also claims that the Ugandan security forces use torture as a tool of interrogation.

The government has also been criticised for its twin-track strategy for dealing with the rebel Lord's Resistance Army, which combines efforts at negotiation with military attacks on rebel hide-outs.

Critics say this is failing to build the trust necessary to bring the rebels out of the bush.